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Kopachuck State Park |
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Park Overview
 Kopachuck
State Park is a 109-acre marine and camping park with 5,600 feet of saltwater
shoreline on Henderson Bay. One portion of the park, Cutts Island (or "Deadman's
Island") is a half mile from shore and reachable only by boat. The park provides
scenic views of sunsets, the Olympic Mountains and Puget Sound.
A vehicle parking permit is no longer required for day visits.
Park Hours Summer: 8 a.m. to dusk.
Winter: 8 a.m. to dusk; day use only.
Camping:
Check-in time, 2:30 p.m.
Check-out time, 1 p.m.
Quiet hours: 10 p.m. to 6:30 a.m.
Driving Directions Located five miles west of Gig Harbor, Wash.
Coming from either the east or the west, take the second Gig Harbor exit off
Hwy. 16. Look for the Kopachuck State Park sign. Take that exit and follow signs
five miles to the park.
Picnic Facilities The park provides four kitchen shelters with electricity,
plus 16 sheltered and 76 unsheltered picnic tables on a first-come, first-served
basis.
Activities
| Trails |
Water Activities |
Other |
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- Boating (saltwater)
- Diving
- Fishing (saltwater)
- Personal Watercraft (saltwater)
- Swimming (saltwater)
- Water Skiing (saltwater)
- Clamming
- Crabbing
- Oysters
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- Beachcombing
- Bird Watching
- 2 Fire Circles
- Interpretive Activities
- Wildlife Viewing
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There is a large field suitable for volleyball, but equipment is not provided.
Most of the activities at Kopachuck center around the beach. During low tide,
the sun warms the sand, which in turn warms the water brought in by the tide.
The sandy beach is ideal for wading, sand-castle building, and exploring the
marine habitat. The most popular day-use area is the beach. Getting there
requires a short 1/8-mile walk down a hill. People with limited mobility may
drive or be driven to the beach. Contact park staff to make such transportation
arrangements.
Featured Creatures
| Mammals |
Birds |
Fish & Sea Life |
- Chipmunks
- Deer or Elk
- Foxes
- Raccoons
- Squirrels
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- Crows or Ravens
- Ducks
- Eagles
- Geese
- Gulls
- Hawks
- Herons
- Ospreys
- Owls
- Snipes
- Woodpeckers
- Wrens
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- Clams
- Crabs
- Mussels
- Oysters
- Sea Birds
- Sea Cucumbers
- Seals
- Shellfish
- Shrimp
- Starfish
- Salmon
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Environmental Features
| Physical Features |
Plant Life |
Special |
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- Cedar
- Douglas Fir
- Hemlock
- Alder
- Maple
- Foxglove
- Lupines
- Rhododendron
- Ferns
- Moss or Lichens
- Seaweed
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History The name "Kopachuck" originated from "Chinook Jargon," the trade
language of the Pacific Coastal Indians. Kopachuck is a merging of two words: "Kopa"
meaning "at," and "chuck" meaning "water." This scenic park was once a seasonal
fishing and clamming site of the Puyallup and Nisqually tribes.
Cutts Island, which sets in the water a half mile away from the park proper, is
also known as "Deadman's Island." The latter name derives from the belief that
the island was used by saltwater tribes who buried their dead in canoes placed
in the forks of trees. It is unknown how the island acquired the name "Cutts
Island." Prior to its current popular names, the place was called "Crow Island,"
for the large quantity of crows explorer Peter Puget discovered there in 1792,
and later "Scotts Island," in honor of Thomas Scott, quartermaster of the 1841
Wilkes expedition. |
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